After Sunday’s game, Pat Williams came off as a bit perturbed that some folks believed there had been, as he put it, “a crack” in the Williams Wall that he forms with fellow Vikings defensive tackle Kevin Williams. The two Williamses, along with other members of the Vikings’ defense, did a fine job shutting down the 49ers’ running game and shutting up critics of the Williams Wall. I talked to Pat about the Vikings’ defense as well as Monday night’s game against the Green Bay Packers and the hype surrounding Brett Favre playing his old team.

BS: The story going into Monday night’s game is all about Favre playing the Packers. Once the game starts, do you want to turn the story into what your defense does to their quarterback and offense?

PW: It ain’t all about Favre. It’s all about Favre to everybody else. To us, it’s all about this team. We don’t let that talk about Favre bother us. They’re talking it every day on the news, but it’s all about the team.

BS: Do you feel your defense coming on and getting where you want it to be?

PW: It’s always about us getting better and better. That’s our main focus. Every year, we start off (slow) like this. And it does get better. We started off last year the same way. It’s all about how you end. It ain’t all about the start.

BS: Do you feel you have one of the best front sevens in the NFL, or is it the best front seven?

PW: I think we’re the best in the league. I mean, look around. I think our front seven is the best.

BS: How much does it help to have E.J. Henderson back and Chad Greenway seemingly getting better and better?

PW: Basically, the only guy missing is Sharp (safety Darren Sharper). So we have our whole defense back from last year. Our cornerbacks are the greatest. I think our defense is one of the best in the league.

BS: You hear a lot of talk about athletes being in their prime. You seem to have been in your prime for a number of years.

PW: Everybody tells me, “You ain’t fading.” It ain’t about age or prime. I just have fun. I think differently than all the young cats coming in. I’m an old-school cat. I don’t take it serious. I don’t over-study film. I just go out there and have fun.

BS: So, the rocking chair doesn’t mean you’ve suddenly dropped off? (He was sitting in a rocking chair in front of his locker.)

PW: I’m basically chilling. This is basically my chill chair. After the practice, I get into the rocking chair and just relax.

BS: Are you playing as good or even better than you ever have because, with your experience, there’s nothing that an offense is going to do that will surprise you?

PW: All those guys around me make it easier. I don’t have to do no extra. I just do what I do.

BS: Earlier in your career, you had to be the star of the Buffalo Bills defense, right?

PW: I’ve got Jared Allen, Kevin Williams, E.J. Henderson, Ray Edwards, all them guys making my job a whole lot easier. I don’t have to do all that extra stuff no more.

BS: You, Kevin, E.J., Jared Allen, Greenway, Antoine Winfield — you could have six guys who can be Pro Bowlers. That has got to be exciting. And offensively and defensively, you might have one of the most balanced Vikings teams in years. Is this the most balanced team you’ve been on?

PW: Yeah. Last year, it got good. This year, it’s a whole lot better. If we have some kind of break on the field, we don’t panic. If you panic, it will kill you. If we have a break on the field, we don’t panic. We just come to the sideline, talk about it and everybody stays calm. We have a lot of veterans. We keep everything smooth.

BS: After the win over the 49ers, you talked about the perceived crack in the Williams Wall. Is everybody done talking about that after the way you played?

PW: There are no cracks. I was telling people, it happened the same way last year. A couple of teams got 80-some yards on the ground. We ended strong. You don’t want to start fast. You want to end strong.

BS: Do you have a good feeling about how this season will turn out?

PW: Everybody in the locker room is happy. You have people on the outside asking you the same question, “How’s Brett? Is Brett nice?” Everybody has accepted Brett. Brett walks around. We joke, this and that. He doesn’t hide from us. There was talk last year after he signed with New York that Brett was off in his own room and Brett wasn’t with the guys.

BS: Does Brett seem more tense this week?

PW: I just told him to calm down. We’ve got his back.

BS: Is he amped up more than usual?

PW: Yeah, yeah, yeah. He’s kind of pumped up, but we told him, “Don’t worry about it, Brett. We’ve got your back. We will fight to the end for you.”

BS: You want to win this game to go to 4-0 and keep the division lead, but does a part of you want to win for Favre?

PW: Yeah. I know how that feels. When I first came here, we went to Buffalo, and you always want to beat your old team. Everybody thinks like that.

BS: If there was any doubt in anyone’s mind before, is everyone now 100 percent sold on Brett?

PW: Everybody loves him. You watch that guy at practice, working hard. He’s here watching film early. When I’m here, Brett is here.

ON AND ON

Here is Vikings defensive end Jared Allen …

On how he views Monday night’s game against the Packers: “It’s going to be a fun game. I’m excited about it. This has a little bit more than another NFC North game. Are we going to treat it that way? Yeah. Even take the whole Brett (Favre) factor out, it’s still ‘Monday Night Football,’ NFC North, at home in Minneapolis. We’re excited about it. We want to go out there and help Brett get a win against the Pack. It’s going to be emotional, but it’s going to come down to fundamentals. It’s going to come down to stopping the run and forcing them into third-and-long situations.”

On whether anything is better than getting a sack on “Monday Night Football”: “Nah. ‘Monday Night Football’ is pretty sweet. It’s always a fun thing. I didn’t have a very good ‘Monday Night Football’ game last year, so I want to turn that around.”

On the Packers’ offensive line: “They’re a talented group. It’s going to be a typical NFC North, Green Bay versus Vikings game. It’s going to get crazy. It’s going to get loud. It’s going to be physical. It’s going to be fun. We’re ready for that.”

On whether he’s in a groove yet: “I’m playing well right now. I think I’m playing good football. There are always things I’m trying to get better on. We went back and watched the San Francisco film. There are a couple of sacks we probably left on the floor. We had a couple of really good rushes that didn’t pay off. And then we had a couple of rushes where we got tied up on the edges just a little bit. I think we played the run really well. We bounced back on that. It’s a week-to-week thing. It’s just finding the little fundamental things you’ve got to focus on and do. As far as a groove, you’re always improving that groove.”

On what’s at stake Monday night: “We know the implications of the game. First, we’re trying to be 4-0. We’re trying to stay up in the division. They’re coming in here, it’s a division road game, and they want to win. I’m sure they want to hit Brett pretty hard. It’s going to be one of those things where it’s going to be an emotional, fun game. But, in the scheme of things, it’s still one game in the division, and that’s all we’re trying to win.”

On Favre: “You want to support all your teammates. I think Coach Brad Childress put it well the other day on Jim Rome’s show: It doesn’t matter who the guy is if we’re playing one of the opposing teams. Whether it’s me going back to Kansas City, or Brett with Green Bay or Hutch (Steve Hutchinson) in Seattle, you want to perform well against your old team. (Childress) does a great job and the coaches do a great job of keeping it in perspective. It’s an NFC North game at home that we need to win.”

On if Favre has been jacked up this week: “He’s Brett as usual. I haven’t seen him doing back flips or anything.”

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